UK Climate Legislation is a Model
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by: DanielStouffer | Total views: 119 | Word Count: 452
Since the dawn of the industrial era, which we are led to believe was 1750, we have had a seemingly never ending thirst for energy and products produced through the use of fossil fuels. Over the centuries we were not aware of the damage that we were causing and it has been only in relatively recent times that we have come to terms with the significant and threatening effects that we have caused to our environment.
The principal emitters of dangerous greenhouse gases have been identified under the new UK climate legislation which aims to take on the problem of climate change head on. These entities must take significant steps to reduce the large amounts of carbon dioxide emissions or face financial penalties appropriately.
While in an ideal world, each one of us would realize that the consequences of consumption are far-reaching and could have a devastating effect on our future generations, in reality politicians realize that this is not sufficient to make us change our ways. Corporate citizens are essentially driven by revenues and profits, although they may give relatively significant attention to environmental concerns. UK climate legislation recognizes that intent is not enough and must be backed up by hard action.
Ultimately, the success or failure of a company is dictated by powerful market forces. This has not really had an effect on carbon emissions to this point, but UK climate legislation changes all of that. Companies now face a cap on the amount of emissions that they are responsible for before penalties are imposed.
The conversion to the role of a commodity means that an organization must now achieve efficiencies to reduce its reliance on fossil fuels. UK climate legislation will ultimately have a big effect on carbon emissions by controlling the amount that each organization may "purchase" It is in the company's best interests to cut down on its carbon bill.
We have gone too far with out action and understand that we need to play catch-up in this respect. Therefore it is likely that the majority of advanced countries will adopt a "cap and trade" program of some kind as the consequences are serious.
Opponents of UK climate legislation felt that its imposition would create unnecessary and prohibitive barriers to global trade and additional obstacles within the international trading arena. Nevertheless, the bill was among the first to specify mandatory engagement by major organizations.
The Climate Change Act of 2008 gave birth to the Carbon Reduction Commitment, and these activities will surely be watched with keen interest around the world. Many feel that the government of the United States will adopt something similar to the UK climate legislation, especially as the administration has indicated so. It remains to be seen what emerges from Congress.
About the Author
Daniel Stouffer has much more information about the UK climate legislation and how a visit to www.verisae.com will aid you.
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